Top of page

Emil Edgren in uniform [ca.1945]

Veterans History Project Service Summary:

  • War or Conflict: World War, 1939-1945
  • Branch of Service: Army
  • Unit of Service: 162nd Signal Photographic Company; 3908th Signal Service Battalion
  • Location of Service: Fort Ord, California; Fort Monmouth, New Jersey; New York; Iceland; England; France; European Theater
  • Highest Rank: Technician Four
  • Collection Number: AFC/2001/001/65358

View full service history

"I was able to get kind of a nice picture…" (Audio interview, 17:58)

Shipping out to the European Theater in World War II, Emil Edgren encountered a few obstacles on his path to serving with the Army Pictorial Service. After finally securing a spot, his persistence paid off: he was rewarded with plum assignments and met many of the war's notables from behind the lens. His time with the APS involved more than just portraits of generals and royalty: he took one of his most impressive shots--of an 82nd Airborne soldier during an ambush--while on the front lines during the Battle of the Bulge.

Emil David Edgren Collection
Interview / Recording

More Resources

[ Undated letter from President Roosevelt to soldiers of the U.S. Army ]
[ U.S. Army Pictorial Division Photo Caption Sheet ]
[ Untitled Memoir: 1941-1945 ]
[ Pamphlett in German: "Wer Hat Das Schlachten Gewollt?" ]

About this Item

Title

  • Emil David Edgren Collection

Names

  • Henderson, Brian Gene
  • Edgren, Emil David
  • Farr, Sam
  • U.S. House of Representatives/Sam Farr

Home State

  • California

Headings

  • -  Edgren, Emil David
  • -  World War, 1939-1945 -- Personal Narratives
  • -  United States. Army.

Repository

  • Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Gender

  • Male

Status

  • veteran

Service History

  • World War, 1939-1945

    • Branch of Service: Army
    • Unit of Service: 162nd Signal Photographic Company; 3908th Signal Service Battalion
    • Location of Service: Fort Ord, California; Fort Monmouth, New Jersey; New York; Iceland; England; France; European Theater
    • Highest Rank: Technician Four
    • Dates of Service: 1941-1945
    • Entrance into Service: Enlisted
    • Military Status: veteran

Materials

  • Audio: CD [1 item] -- Oral history interview (collected 2007; 1994-12-31)
  • Manuscript: Clippings [9 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1944-2007)
  • Manuscript: Correspondence [2 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1995-03)
  • Manuscript: Memoirs [1 item] -- Typewritten document (collected unknown)
  • Manuscript: Military papers (orders, personnel/201 files, etc) [9 items] -- Typewritten document (collected 1941-1945)
  • Photograph: Photographic print [6 items] -- Photograph (collected 1943-1945)
  • Photograph: Digital print [45 items] -- Photograph (collected 1943-1945)
  • Computer File: CD [1 item] -- Multiple types of electronic files (collected 2007; 2007-12-19)

Collection Number

  • AFC/2001/001/65358

Cite as

  • Emil David Edgren Collection (AFC/2001/001/65358), Veterans History Project, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

Online Format

  • audio
  • image

Additional Metadata Formats

IIIF Presentation Manifest

Rights & Access

Using VHP Material in Publication or Exhibition

The Veterans History Project (VHP) at the Library of Congress collects, preserves and makes accessible the firsthand recollections of U.S. military veterans who served from World War I through more recent conflicts and peacekeeping missions, so that future generations may hear directly from veterans and better understand what they saw, did and felt during their service. The Veterans History Project Collection includes oral histories along with documentary materials such as original letters, diaries, photographs, and memoirs.

Veterans and interviewers contribute these materials to the Library for scholarly and educational purposes, retaining any copyright they may hold. Therefore, permission must be obtained before using the interview or other materials in exhibition or publication. Researchers or others who would like to make further use of these materials should contact the Veterans History Project for assistance.

As a publicly supported institution, the Library generally does not own rights to material in its collections. Therefore, it does not charge permission fees for use of such material and cannot give or deny permission to publish or otherwise distribute material in its collections. Responsibility for making an independent legal assessment of an item from the Library’s collections and for securing any necessary permissions rests with persons desiring to use the item.

Please contact us with questions.

Obtaining Copies of VHP Materials

In order for VHP materials to be duplicated, we must receive written permission from the interviewee for you to obtain a copy of the recording unless the proposed use is limited to personal use, research, or other uses permissible by copyright law. If the interviewee is deceased, their next-of-kin may grant written permission.

Please contact VHP for assistance if you need to contact a veteran for permission to use their materials in exhibition or publication, or if you have received permission from the veteran and need access to high-resolution copies of VHP collection materials.

Citing VHP Materials

Please use the following formats when citing Veterans History Project materials (substituting the appropriate name and collection ID number).

Materials as a whole:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Manuscript material:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Memoirs (MS02), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Transcript (MS04), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Correspondence (MS01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Recording:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Audio recording (SR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Video recording (MV01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Photograph:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH01), photographer unknown, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.
  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Photographs (PH03-PH14), Ralph Williams photographer, Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Computer file:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Computer file (CF01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Artifact:

  • John P. Snodgrass (AFC 2001/001/[VHP collection]), Artifact (AR01), Veterans History Project Collection, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress.

Cite This Item

Citations are generated automatically from bibliographic data as a convenience, and may not be complete or accurate.

Chicago citation style:

Henderson, Brian Gene, Emil David Edgren, Sam Farr, and U.S. House Of Representatives/Sam Farr. Emil David Edgren Collection. 1941. Personal Narrative. https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.65358/.

APA citation style:

Henderson, B. G., Edgren, E. D., Farr, S. & U.S. House Of Representatives/Sam Farr. (1941) Emil David Edgren Collection. [Personal Narrative] Retrieved from the Library of Congress, https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.65358/.

MLA citation style:

Henderson, Brian Gene, et al. Emil David Edgren Collection. 1941. Personal Narrative. Retrieved from the Library of Congress, <www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.65358/>.